


Whispers of the Past

by pretzelaesthetic



Series: Yokai DND [2]
Category: Yokai (DND)
Genre: Blood and Injury, Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition, Memory Related, Minor Character Death
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-04
Updated: 2020-06-04
Packaged: 2021-03-03 23:08:05
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,922
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24533572
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/pretzelaesthetic/pseuds/pretzelaesthetic
Summary: As Akira walks through an empty Inari Temple, he begins to remember different events in time.
Relationships: Akira (Yokai DND) & Kikon (Yokai DND), Akira (Yokai DND) & The Inari (Yokai DND)
Series: Yokai DND [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1771771





	Whispers of the Past

**Author's Note:**

> It’s 2am I’m not going Beta this right now

The floorboards quietly squeak underfoot, and the hallways feel long and endless. Akira walks through the Inari Temple, walks through the building that was once home to many kitsune, walks through a place that should have never felt this lonely. He trails a hand on the wall, as he continues down. Nine large, flowing white fox tails billow out behind him as he goes, and his white tuft fox ears flatten back as his mind floods with the memories that occupied this space. The place that used to feel so alive, but was now haunted by the restless spirits of kitsune brutally slain. 

The old nine tailed kitsune stares out into the courtyard. Weeds have grown in cracks between stones, and vines have begun their slow crawl up the walls. For a moment he hears the laughing of children. He shakes his head, his long white hair falling over his eyes. Akira lifts a slender, yet strong hand to move the strands of hair away from his eyes, and when he does, his vision is greeted by a scene in the courtyard. Three small children, with fox ears and varying numbers of tails are running around the grassy yard, they yell and shout happily, and laugh as they play and run around. Akira gives a quick, hurt intake of breath, as if merely seeing this brings him pain. 

“Yoru!! Give it back!” A small boy’s voice unhappily cries out, jumping to try and grab something out of the taller girl’s hands, held high over her head. 

The girl sticks out her tongue, mockingly, but with no true malice in her wide, bright green eyes. Akira’s attention moves to the quiet, white haired boy sitting on a larger stone, his grey eyes observing the two squabbling children with little emotion. 

“Hotaru! Tell Yoru to give it back!” The first boy turns to Hotaru, who stares back at him with an even expression. Hotaru turns to face Yoru, who crosses her arms, and looks away, avoiding his empty gaze. He then turns back to the boy.

“What should I say, Kikon?” He asks, his voice is soft, and somewhat monotoned. Kikon scrunches up his face in thought, but doesn’t seem to get far, instead turning to face Yoru once more, and start demanding she return ‘it’. 

Akira hears a soft cough at his side, and startles back when he sees his younger self, walking towards the kids. He watches with wide eyes as young Akira moves to look down at the three kitsune. 

“Excuse me, kids. Would you mind telling me what exactly is going on here?” 

“Lord Akira…” 

“L-lord Akira!”

“Old man!” Three sets of eyes train themselves onto Kikon, who begins to sweat anxiously, “Wh-what?” He stutters, chuckling nervously.

Yoru bops him on the head with a little leather bound book, the very thing she had been taunting him with earlier. 

“OW!!” 

“Kikon! You can’t call Lord Akira that!” She scolds him, tutting like a mother hen, despite being a decade younger than Kikon. Hotaru stands by, trying to hide the tiny smile threatening to form on his face. From the doorway leading outside, Akira can’t help but bark out a small laugh, and hide the lower half of his face with his sleeve as he stifles another laugh. When he looks back up, he sees that the courtyard is completely empty, save for the growing weeds, and vines. He blinks owlishly and shakes his head, continuing through the temple, unsure of what just happened.

As he walks through the halls, he stumbles, his head feels like it’s splitting open. Pressing his palm to his forehead, he straightens up, only to quickly sidestep to avoid being knocked over by a pair of young kitsune running the opposite direction. A small boy with a streak of orange amidst his short, scruffy black hair, and a taller boy with short white-grey hair and mismatched eyes. They run down the halls, barreling last Akira, yelling to each other and laughing as they go. 

“Keep up Kagami!!” The heterochromic one shouts to the black and orange haired kitsune, who huffs in mock annoyance, before yelling back.

“Whatever, Shinji. I’m going to get you!” The two dissolve in a fit of laughter, as they disappear from view, seemingly sinking into the shadows. 

Akira stares into the empty hallway before turning back and continuing towards the kitchen. His headache won’t let up, and he looks up past the kitchen doorway, and inside, he swears he sees four kits. One with four tails, one with three, one with two and a single tailed fox. They still have their baby fluff, and don’t speak in Common, yipping to one another instead, and they clamour over a sleeping Young Akira. He hears himself mumble in his sleep, as the kits snuggle against him. Akira hears a soft chuckle and whips his head to see a teenaged Hotaru watching the debacle. When Akira turns to look back at himself, he sees the empty kitchen, and an empty table and chairs. The soft squeaks from the kits, replaced with nothing but dead silence.

Akira moves to the hall where all the kitsune have their own respective rooms, he hears hushed talking coming from Kikon’s room. He does not open the door, and instead freezes in his tracks, his fox ears twitching and straining to pick up the voices.

“Please son, tell me. Have you been sneaking out at night? Kikon, is everything alright?”

“I’m fine, Akira. You don’t have to worry about me all the time, I’m all grown up now.” 

“If you say so, Kikon. I trust you.” 

Akira stares into space, not noticing Hotaru quietly closing his own door shut. He shakes his head and goes out to the front of the temple, where he steps out to see the dramatic scene before him. An uncomfortable looking Kyo, a very determined looking Raijin and Hideo, accompanied by Jun who holds a steady, cold stare, stand before the temple, as past Akira has placed himself between the Misaki Council members, and Kikon, the next temple successor, who covers behind him. Kikon’s clothes have blood splatter stains on them, and his face is fearful. He looks lost and scared and confused, his hands shaking as they hold a pair of scissors, dried blood on their blades. 

“Akira, you know the rules. We have to do this. No exceptions, not even for him.” Lady Raijin states, her expression schooled.

Kikon flinches, which makes the present Akira rush forward and embrace him, hugging him close, as the young kitsune shakes, making the scissors quietly rattle. Past Akira takes another step forward, staring at his fellow council members.

“Kikon has done nothing wrong. You are trespassing on Kitsune lands, I must ask you to leave. I am sorry, my council members, but you are not welcome here.”

“Akira… you know we don’t want to do thi-“ Kyo looks at Akira with pleading eyes, begging the old kitsune to relent.

“You have no choice in the matter. Your ward has broken the Yokai Laws. He will face us in a trial, and be given a chance to explain himself before we vote on his punishment.” Hideo snaps, stepping forth to stand face to face with Akira. Kikon jumps back, as Present Akira holds him tight. Wanting to transform and attack Hideo, but unable to make himself let the shaking kitsune go, Akira relents to simple glowering at the Tsukumogami. 

“Harbouring a law breaker would call for harsh punishment, Akira.” Jun quietly, but firmly states, his focused expression unwavering. 

“Punishment…?” Akira hears Kikon mutter in his arms. Before he knows it, Kikon pushes away from him, to stand before the council.

“Enough.”

Akira blinks to see the scene change to later that fateful night. He, alongside the other residents of the temple, await Past Akira and Kikon’s return anxiously. Shinji and Kagami huddle together, speaking in hushed whispers. Yoru bites at her nails nervously, as the four kits, Ichiro, Nichijou, Sanjuro and Yonaki go from fox to fox, asking where Akira and Kikon are. Hotaru waits silently, and still, until he snaps his head up, and says two haunting words.

“Akira’s alone.”

Past Akira trudges home, defeat weighing heavy on his shoulders, and he lifts his head to face his wards, meeting their horrified eyes as he shakes his head gently, before buckling down and falling to the ground on his knees. The kitsune rush forth to support their guardian, as the four kits wail in grief, and Hotaru sits, still staring forward, but his body becoming, as tears slowly trail down his face from his cold grey eyes.

And again, the memory shifts as Akira walks into the forest surrounding the temple. He sees a young white haired kitsune girl, her long hair tied up, a red symbol on her forehead. She is lying face down on the ground, as if she dragged herself as far as she could back to the temple, back home. A bloody trail showing where she came from. Her name is Kishiro, a loud, strong and stubborn kitsune, with 3 tails. Always hungry, always smiling, always laughing. But now her face is stuck with a terrified, pained expression, her eyes wide with effort, and hands and fingers bloody, her guts spilling out from the slash across her stomach. 

Next is Ryuhiko, an athletic, curious 2 tailed kitsune, with incredibly light sensitive eyes that he covered with protective goggles. He is scattered across the temple grounds, and they have to form several hunting parties to track down all his missing body parts. His head was thrown in the river, where Yoru finds it washed up on the river bank. 

After him, is Kiyomi, an elegant yet somewhat mischievous 5 tailed lady, older than most of the kitsune, asides from Akira. She adored the four kits, and loved visiting the temple hot springs to rejuvenate her water-magic. She is found by the twins, Miyabi and Tsubaki, her body hung from a sturdy tree branch, she has bruises covering her body, her face almost indistinguishable. 

After Kiyomi, are the 4 tailed twins. He and his sister went off on their own to find the culprits. Neither returned. The golden haired twins were found on the roof, their bodies dumped there in two heaps, bones shattered, and covered in cuts, their organs dug out and still missing, their bright blue eyes ripped from their sockets. 

Nichijou is the next victim. His three siblings find their brother decapitated in front of the temple. On the stone pathed ground before the body, written in dried blood, is “we are watching”. The remaining kitsune scour the grounds for the little two tailed kit’s head, but cannot find it anywhere. 

Shinji and Kagami resist Akira’s orders to stop looking for the culprits. To stay safe, and stay hidden. They want to avenge their fallen friends, and sneak out at night to hunt them down. The two are separated, and only Shinji comes home. Half of Kagami is found, parts of his body ripped away, including all 3 of his tails. 

Akira returns to the present, his breathing laboured and shallow, as he feels his body shaking at the memories he misses, the memories that he regrets, the memories that he desperately wishes to forget, but would never forgive himself if he did. 

He clenches his teeth, putting back on his council face. 

The one he tried to keep up during his protege’s trial. 

The one that is beginning to crack.


End file.
